The polytheists of Makkah and Arabia as a whole professed to be the followers of Prophet Ibrahim^-AS's religion. Allah^-SWT directed the Holy Prophet^-SW to recount to them the story of Prophet Ibrahim^-AS, (1) who he^-AS was and (2) what he^-AS preached as compared to what they were doing. It may be recalled that Prophet Ibrahim^-AS had questioned his^-AS father and his^-AS people who did they worship and what beliefs they held with regard to the idols? They said that they worshipped the idols and had dedicated their entire lives to them.

The Worshipped Must Have Absolute Knowledge And Power

Prophet Ibrahim^-AS asked them whether the idols were aware of their situation, could hear their invocations and help them. Or if they were not worshipped, could their annoyance do any harm? They obviously had no answer and confessed that they were just following their forefathers without any rationale. So he^-AS called upon them to realize that the practices of their ancestors were leading them to destruction, and if he^-AS did the same he^-AS too would be doomed. The Only One^-SWT worthy of worship is the Rabb^-SWT , the Creator of all the worlds and Who^-SWT meets everyone's needs. It is He^-SWT Who had created him^-AS and taught him^-AS the ways of life. In other words, the birth of a child and the subsequent development into a grownup intellectual, a scientist, a politician or an administrator, and the making of Prophets^-AS and Messengers^-AS into revolutionary personalities, are all manifestations of His^-SWT Absolute Powers. While a human being needs food all the time, it is He^-SWT Who arranges it. Health and sickness are also part of human life and when the latter takes hold, it is He^-SWT again Who restores the health. He^-SWT gives death and shall ultimately requicken all to face accountability, and Prophet Ibrahim^-AS was no exception though "hopeful" that He^-SWT would overlook his^-AS mistakes and forgive him^-AS.

It is a fact that Prophets^-AS are innocent, free of errors. But here it is a confession of Allah^-SWT's Magnificence and a display of extreme respect, that Prophet Ibrahim^-AS has used the word 'hopeful'. Besides, it highlights a general rule of relationship or dealing with Allah^-SWT , that everyone should only worship Him^-SWT Who created them with inborn capacity to seek knowledge and practise it. And it is His^-SWT Forgiveness for which one can hope for in the Akhirah.

From Absence To Presence

As Prophet Ibrahim^-AS praised Allah^-SWT , he^-AS experienced a state of presence before Him^-SWT , so he^-AS prayed directly. “O’ Allah^-SWT ! Grant me Hakm, which according to Commentators means wisdom and knowledge.

To Seek Power To Enforce Truth

However, according to Behr-e-Muhit with reference to Imam Razi^-RUA wisdom and knowledge are the traits of Prophethood, which Prophet Ibrahim^-AS already possessed. Here it means the power of enforcement whereby he^-AS could arbitrate between people, uproot falsehood and enforce the Truth. People are liable to go astray when they have powers to rule. The Prophets^-AS are, however, an exception. For the sake of educating people, Prophet Ibrahim^-AS added to his^-AS prayer: ‘Bless me with power and authority and keep me amongst the righteous’. He^-AS sought power to enforce piety and virtue in a manner whereby his^-AS traditions would be practised by those who succeed him^-AS in time and also rule as a means of proclaiming Allah^-SWT's Magnificence and not of deluding people. It was accepted in the form of raising of the Holy Prophet^-SW and the Muslim rule, especially the rule of the first four Caliphs. Besides, this invocation encompasses all those who will establish and implement piety until the Day of Judgment. He^-AS further begged Allah^-SWT to accept his^-AS own actions to deserve Jannah and its bounties.

To Pray For An Infidel's Guidance Is Legitimate

He^-AS also prayed for his^-AS father’s guidance and forgiveness so that he may not be a source of embarrassment for the Prophet^-AS on the Day of Reckoning. Though he^-AS did pray, yet guidance has to be sought by a person personally from the core of the heart, which was totally lacking in case of his^-AS father and as such he remained deprived. Prophet Ibrahim^-AS also described the scenario of the Day of Judgment when affluence, power, pomp and show or children will be of no avail for they merely serve the purpose of mundane gains and render the heart heedless of Allah^-SWT . Sure destruction awaits them while those blessed with Qalb-e-Saleem, will be emancipated.

Qalb-e-Saleem

In other words, their Qulub remained alive with His^-SWT Love and illuminated with His^-SWT Lights. They used all their resources including children as means of enforcing Allah^-SWT's Commands. Their affluence and progeny indeed served them well. And the source of attaining Qalb-e-Saleem is Allah^-SWT's Zikr. The Quran declares that it is through Allah^-SWT's Zikr that the Qalb finds peace. And its fountainhead is the sacred Qalb of the Holy Prophet^-SW while a Shaikh is the custodian of his^-SW blessings, whose Tawajjuh engages a Qalb in Zikr and illuminates it.

On that Day, the Jannah shall be brought nigh duly festooned, the eternal abode of those who were conscious of and had obeyed Allah^-SWT . And the Hell too shall be drawn closer so that the rebels could see their final destination. The infidels will be asked to look for their gods they had chosen to worship and see if they could rescue them or themselves. The idols and the infidels will together be hurled into Hell upside down as well as the entire legions of Iblis. They will quarrel between themselves and the infidels swearing upon Allah^-SWT will confess that it were they who erred by giving such disgraceful stones and devils the status of God. They will acknowledge that their wayward and heretic leaders had led them to destruction while being wrongdoers themselves. Today, there was no one even to intercede for them, nor was there a well wisher!

They shall desperately wish to return to the world once again, promising that they would become true Muslims. Despite the fact that these accounts offer much admonition, a majority of people remain deprived of faith. Similar was the state of the Makkans contemporary to the Holy Prophet^-SW. He^-SW must, therefore, know that his^-SW Rabb^-SWT is Mighty and can destroy everyone of them if He^-SWT so chooses. But He^-SWT is Merciful and relents until the given respite is over.